She remembered their first night out together well...
At four she began to prepare. Of the hour and a half she allowed herself before meeting Voz, she spent one-third of it soaking in a most relaxing hot bubble bath. It was a great way to relax, with hot, steaming, fragrant bubbles up to your neck, and good rock 'n' roll on the stereo. This was followed with setting her hair; a task she didn’t mess with often. It could be such a pain when the results were bad. Often she showed up at work in a low-slung ponytail, held back with a fancy clip or band. Now she felt like taking the time, and she got passable results for her efforts. Makeup was no problem: tonight, she decided to try a slightly heavier-than-natural look, using mostly beige and browns, which widened her hazel eyes. But color came to the lips with a plumish-toned lipstick. Raina hated lipstick, the feel, so she left it on long enough for it to stain her lips, then blotted most of it away.
She used perfume next; a musky-spicy scent that was her favorite. Lotion, powder, then spray to make it linger, then a dusting of mist over her outfit. After ten minutes, the smell would fade to just a teasing hint that would last all night.
The outfit was basic. It consisted of a slightly-clingy black bodysuit with a sweetheart neckline and half-sleeves, black jeans, and black flats. Over this, to be a bit more dressy instead of too casual, she put on a milk-chocolate jacket. Then, to top it off, she added large gold hoop earrings and a gold rope necklace that nearly reached her waist. Not a perfect look, but good. At least for this dinner, it could almost be called great.
She was glad they had decided to meet at the restaurant; the drive to Tortelli's was calming. The half-empty lot at the restaurant did not surprise her. Tortelli's didn’t often attract the younger couples going out before meeting others at the local bars; mostly the after-eight for older couples eating late after the weekly bowling leagues. She was here before them. She parked and walked to the door, feeling numb and nervous at the same time. The maitre'd informed her that Voz was waiting for her at the bar. Because the eatery attracted mostly a more mature clientele, the chance of a fan making a scene over him was small. When she finally saw him, Raina realized how small the chance was. She only recognized him because she was specifically looking for him, and because he waved her over.
Voz looked nothing like the “rock god” everyone knew. From head to toe he was the average Joe - casual gray pants and sweater, with a white button-collared shirt underneath. He had pulled his gorgeous hair back into a ponytail that could be found hiding in the back of his collar. But his eyes gave him away. Those eyes.
She allowed him to order them both a Heineken while they waited for their table. Those few moments were needed for her to overcome her shock at his change in appearance.
The bartender gave them their drinks as the maitre'd told them their table was ready. They followed him to a table along the back wall. It was one of the best, as the back wall was glass that looked out over the man-made lake. Across the water, a small group of teens was building a bonfire.
The waiter brought menus, but after Raina consented, Voz ordered them both the fettuccine special with salads. He explained his hurry to order dinner, "I'm hoping to talk you into going out afterward."
She began asking him about how the plans for the tour were going. After a couple questions, he tried to beg off. He really didn’t want to talk "shop". Raina told him about her job at the advertising firm, "We Sell", mentioning that she was interested in learning new promotional tactics. Voz told her as much as he personally knew, which was basically that they did voice-overs for concert commercials and interviews for radio. Other than that, Voz wasn't involved in the promotional details. He told her that she was more than welcome to talk with Devin.
They found that they were both interested in many of the same kinds of music, other than the Jury. Though Raina was not blessed with any musical talent, she followed the breaking up and formations of many rock bands. She surprised Voz by recognizing many names he brought up during their discussion. Over the salads, she loosened up enough to tell him about the time she watched a documentary on how Michael Jackson made his mini-movie for Thriller. Ever since then she had always wanted to be involved in or even watch a video being made.
Voz asked her if she knew their song Someone's Afraid from their new CD. She did. He told her that it was going to be the next Jury single and that they would be shooting a video for it in a couple months. "I'd like to hear any ideas you have for it. We haven't really had time for a group discussion on it, with the problems of the planning the tour. But we do know that we want to do something that's different for us. Since you are in advertising, you must've done some commercials?"
"Yes, but I was never involved in shooting. Mr. Beckell, my boss, and I have personally made up storyboards, but usually someone else does the paste-ups and we do the approving before making a pitch. I know nothing about them from a production standpoint."
"I'd still like to hear your ideas. Even though it has a hard edge, Don and Brill see it as a love song. They want to put something sad, lonely, even desperate to it for contrast. I think we need a woman's opinion. Why don't you just think on it? Maybe when it comes to shooting time, you can exchange ideas with us for a day or two around the set. It could be valuable experience for your own career."
As she ate her Fettuccine Alfredo, she saw Voz had a point. She could learn something about production that may help the firm's choices of commercials for proposals; she decided to keep his offer in mind.
They talked and ate, Raina occasionally glancing at an older couple dining across the room, accompanied by the woman's seeing-eye dog. Raina never ceased to be amazed at the abilities of these dogs. It reminded her of the dog she had as a child. Voz noticed the dog also and asked her if she had one. She said she was sorry she didn't, because of her apartment. Voz's neighbor took care of his three while he was on the road. They told each other stories about their dogs, and other funny anecdotes about canines through their sorbet dessert. When she told Voz about Donna's Labrador eating an ice cream cone on a hot day last summer, he laughed until he cried.
Those eyes, now wet with tears of laughter, caught her attention again. So expressive. Now they were full of fun. In the Jury videos, they were bedroom eyes. Depth and passion were in them. Raina felt her resistance weakening. Voz signaled the waiter for the check, and asked Raina what she did for fun in the city when she visited Donna. "We can't end the night now, it's early. I'm in the mood to kick back a little."
Raina began, "I don't think . . ."
Voz snapped his fingers. "Got it! How about stopping at the county fair? It's only twenty minutes away."
"We're hardly dressed for it. And a county fair is so crowded - especially on a Saturday night. Won't you be recognized?"
But he only grinned. "Look at me. Did you know who I was when you first got here?"
"Well, no, but . . ."
"Please. It's been so long since I’ve been to a fair. Take me. Show me what it's like."
Raina hadn't been to a fair herself for years. The night was going well, and the fair would be too public for anything to go... wrong, she rationalized. Ok, it couldn’t get too personal, she corrected herself. If she could keep her emotions in check, what would it hurt? She was having a good time, and she was beginning to feel comfortable with Voz.
To his delight, she agreed to go. Since she knew the area better than he did, she also had him ride with her. They got into her car and headed for the noise, lights, and smells of a child's ultimate night out, a teen's romantic night life. Raina wondered what a fair was for adults. She would soon find out.
~~~~
Within minutes, Voz was transformed. He was no longer the man millions of women worldwide screamed for; all traces of the sexy singer were gone. He was now acting like a ten-year-old who had found a hundred-dollar bill on the sidewalk. This trip to a county fair was an amazing experience for him, so he practically dragged Raina behind him. Talk about kicking back!
About five minutes after walking in, he was hooked. He waited impatiently in line at the ticket booth to plunk down forty dollars for ride tickets. With a wink and a grin he took hold of Raina's hand and systematically proceeded to ride every ride available. They did pass on the kiddie rides, but made the merry-go-round an exception. Once they had covered it all, Voz went back for a few more tickets. They decided together to ride the Scrambler, the Crack-the-Whip, and Shoot-the-Moon again.
Raina thought it was a miracle that neither of them got sick. She felt lightheaded, but in a pleasant way. She would have never before even thought of riding some of the contraptions at the fair. But Voz's excitement was infectious. With that, the kid's laughter, the raucous music, carnie's yelling, and the dancing, whirling lights, Raina was swept away. Being forced close to Voz by the speed of some of the rides was also another reason to clamber into the seats. It was fast becoming enjoyable.
They stopped for some cotton candy and lemonade, purposely slowing down by strolling the midway. Voz must've seemed like an easy mark, for the carnies put on their hard sell as they walked by. Several times Raina was embarrassed to a blush when the pitchman referred to her as Voz's 'beautiful girlfriend' or 'your pretty little lady'.
His luck and skill against the midway games made most odds around fifty-fifty. He won a stuffed tiger at the basketball toss, a stuffed dog with floppy ears at the rifle range. They stood for nearly twenty minutes at Ye Olde English Darts, because he was determined to win, and, he was good. He was shooting for a ceramic vase he thought Lucy Elder would like. To win, he needed a total of five bullseyes out of twelve attempts; he made four, the fifth missing by less than a half-inch. Of course, the carnie tried to make him a deal, but Voz had begun to wind down. Voz started to walk away with a "no thanks chum," when the carnie stopped him by the arm.
"Say, you look like that guy in that rock group . . . "
Voz moved ahead, taking Raina with him. "Sorry bud. It's a good line, but I'm not spending any more money with you." They walked off quickly.
Raina had been startled. They had been here so long without a problem, most likely because of their rapid pace. Now she asked Voz if he wanted to leave. The midway had dropped behind them, and now they were passing the livestock barns. Voz had stopped, staring ahead. "You never told me about this, Raina. We'll go, but after we've been on that."
She followed his eyes to the Ferris wheel. It was quite large, three stories high, which is why they had set it off from the other rides.
"Oh, Voz, I can't. Sorry. I just can't stand heights! It's so open, you're not really strapped in. The cars swing horribly. I can't."
"Please?" he turned to look directly into her eyes. Oh no. The look. "I'll be right there. Nothing will happen. I won't let you be scared."
"Voz . . . "
"How about a deal? We'll go around once. If you can't stand it, we'll get off. OK? Deal?"
It got to her again. The little-boy-lost look. She had barely started to nod an agreement when they were off.
Voz gave the treasures he had won to some children in line. He was able to get the two of them seated in a red car. "To show you I'm serious. Red is for stop." It was corny, and brought a small smile to her lips. Their ascent was very slow, as every car was being stopped to let on new riders. The higher they went, the more tense Raina became. Voz tried to distract her by telling her not to look down, asking her what certain landmarks were, but nothing helped. Deciding to take the bull by the horns, he moved closer to her, putting his arm around her. Raina could not object, she remained very still in order to keep the car from rocking.
At the top, dead center, three stories up, the car stopped again to let new riders aboard. Raina closed her eyes to try to calm herself. She felt entirely stupid sitting here barely moving. She was petrified. If only Voz had not insisted, if only she could resist ”The Look”, she wouldn't have spoiled their evening.
Voz sensed her discomfort, and also felt horrible. His mind raced in an attempt to think of something to say. Neither of them could believe the next thing that came out of his mouth. It was a whisper.
"Brill told me once that if two people got stuck at the top of a Ferris wheel, they had to kiss. It's tradition."
Raina slowly turned her head to him. She was afraid to move, but what he had said surprised her so that she had to look to see if he was joking.
Their faces were close. They looked at each other not knowing what to say. It was an electric moment.
When the Ferris wheel jerked forward, their noses bumped. Voz's hand came to her cheek, he hesitated, then kissed her.
In the second that Raina felt his hot lips brush hers, the Ferris wheel was forgotten. A tingle of excitement raced to her toes and back to her heart, tripling its beat. She felt her cheeks burn. His smell filled her nostrils - oh! he wore her favorite scent. How did he know? How could he know? She started to pull away, but Voz gently pulled her back. This time she responded on instinct, everything else erased from her mind. Even the ride was forgotten. Both of them were caught up in each other, until upon the second descent the catcalls of a few teenagers in line broke the reverie.
They looked at each other questioningly. Raina turned forward, and the ride ended in silence.
They still didn't speak as they left the ride, nor as Voz led them back through the midway to Raina's car.
He opened the door for her. Only the radio broke the monotony of quiet on the way back to his car at Tortelli's.
She pulled into the parking lot under a lamp, a tiny voice at the back of her mind telling her it would be safer. Was that even an issue now?
She shut off the engine and turned to face him at last. "Voz . . . "
He smiled slightly, and God how sexy it made him look in the strange light! “Now this is how I want to remember you." With that, he kissed her again, this time so softly she barely felt him touch her. "I'd like to call you again. Sssshhhhh. Don't say anything now. Just think about tonight. Good night, Raina." He was out of the car and headed for his white sporty model before she could object.
The evening was not at all what she had expected. It took Raina a full ten minutes to gather her thoughts together after Voz had left. Only then could she turn on her car and drive back to Donna’s home.